Staff brought over a card machine.
After the card swipe was successful, a brocade box was handed to Chen Nan, which contained the thousand-year-old dragon's saliva incense.
Besides that.
There was also a jade pendant made of mutton-fat jade!
Although this jade pendant was not of the highest quality, it was still an extraordinary treasure.
Even the jade shops of the Jian family did not possess jade of this caliber.
Its market price was certainly over several million.
But compared to the ten billion price Chen Nan paid for the dragon's saliva incense, it was merely a drop in the bucket!
"The last item up for auction is the Qilin Fruit!"
As the image of the Qilin Fruit appeared on the large screen behind the auctioneer.
The venue erupted.
It was a fruit about the size of a ping-pong ball, round, strawberry-red, and dotted with tiny granules.
The auctioneer exclaimed, "This Qilin Fruit was obtained by our auction house by chance. It is said to grow in extremely hot regions, and three lives were lost in its retrieval!"
"As for the miraculous effects of this fruit, I'm sure everyone has heard. It can transform one's body and spirit. Even a dying person can regain the vitality of their youth upon consuming it!"
"Without further ado, the starting bid is one hundred million. Highest bidder takes it!"
Fierce bidding erupted in the hall.
"Mr. Chen, I've already instructed my staff to gather funds and try to help you bid for this item!" Jiang Jiancheng saw that Chen Nan needed this item and had already sent a message to his secretary earlier.
"Forget it, I'll handle the Qilin Fruit myself," Chen Nan said, shaking his head slightly.
Gathering funds would take time.
And the situation at the venue did not allow Jiang Jiancheng to do so.
"I'm going to the restroom!"
Chen Nan got up and left.
Upon entering the restroom, he held his breath and focused, channeling his qi into the jade pendant to create a protective talisman.
Then.
He went backstage.
"Mr. Chen, is there anything you need?" a Qin family member asked respectfully.
As the dark horse of this auction, the Qin family members naturally recognized Chen Nan.
Chen Nan asked, "Who has the most authority here?"
With a gentle voice, a beautiful woman in her thirties emerged. "May I ask what Mr. Chen needs me for?"
She had bright eyes and white teeth, fair skin, and an elegant, distinguished aura.
The woman introduced herself, "My name is Qin Yu, and I am the person in charge of this auction. Mr. Chen can tell me directly if there is anything."
Chen Nan cut to the chase. "I want to halt the auction outside."
A hint of curiosity flickered in Qin Yu's eyes. "And why is that?"
"I will exchange an item with you," Chen Nan said, producing the protective talisman.
"Uh..." Qin Yu looked taken aback. "Mr. Chen, if I'm not mistaken, this jade pendant was a gift from us to you, wasn't it?"
Chen Nan replied, "But it's no longer the same jade pendant!"
Qin Yu took the jade pendant and examined it carefully, seemingly trying to detect any differences. Unfortunately, she found none.
Chen Nan said, "You can go upstairs and have someone appraise it."
Qin Yu's heart skipped a beat.
She looked at Chen Nan with awe.
How did he know someone was upstairs?
Could he have X-ray vision?
If so.
Was she completely transparent in front of him?
"Mr. Chen, please wait a moment!"
Qin Yu said respectfully and then hurried upstairs.
Previously, she had only regarded Chen Nan as a young master, but now she realized he was no ordinary person.
"Third Granduncle, I have something I'd like you to appraise!" Qin Yu said to an elder with white hair and beard upstairs.
Qin Chuan, the third elder of the Qin family.
He was a Grandmaster-level expert.
He normally did not involve himself in such mundane affairs, but today's auction featured many treasures.
Qin Chuan frowned as he looked at the jade. "Isn't this just an ordinary piece of jade?"
Qin Yu explained, "This jade pendant was a gift from us to Mr. Chen, but he approached me saying he wanted to exchange it for the Qilin Fruit!"
"Not only that, but he also knew there was someone upstairs and asked me to come find you to appraise it!"
"He can sense my presence?" Qin Chuan showed surprise, then carefully felt the jade. His expression changed drastically. "A formation! There's a small formation within this!"
"Holy hell, impossible!"
"This is impossible!"
"Third Granduncle, what's wrong?" Seeing her granduncle so distraught, Qin Yu felt a prickle of fear.
In her memory, her granduncle had never lost his composure like this before.
Qin Chuan was sweating profusely, his voice trembling with fear. "This is a protective talisman!"
"Can jade also be used to make protective talismans?" Qin Yu asked, puzzled.
The Qin family had a history of several hundred years, primarily dealing in medicinal herbs. They often interacted with people from the martial world.
Among them were tales of protective talismans.
"Talismans made on paper are only low-grade protective talismans; they are consumables," Qin Chuan said, his eyes shaking.
Qin Yu gasped. "Such a treasure is only a low-grade protective talisman? Then... then what about a protective talisman made of jade?"
Qin Chuan explained, "Using jade as a carrier creates a high-grade protective talisman. These talismans are not only beautiful and convenient to wear but, most importantly, they are not single-use items!"
"However, crafting such a talisman requires cultivation at the Qi Refining stage!"
"And even a Qi Refining stage expert would find it difficult to instantly set up a small formation within jade!"
At this point, Qin Chuan's tone had changed.
His eyes were filled with fear and unease.
The Qin family had just gifted this jade pendant to Chen Nan.
Now, this jade pendant had become a high-grade protective talisman.
This meant.
Chen Nan had instantly set up a small formation within the jade!
"Third Granduncle, do you mean Mr. Chen is a cultivator at the Qi Refining stage?"
Qin Yu's scalp tingled.
A Grandmaster was already among the top experts in the world.
She never imagined that Chen Nan, at such a young age, would be a Qi Refining stage cultivator.
Qin Chuan nodded solemnly. "Although I find it hard to believe, the facts speak for themselves. Otherwise, there's no explaining the origin of this protective talisman!"
Qin Yu asked nervously, "Then what should we do? Should we agree to the exchange?"
"Why wouldn't we?" Qin Chuan's eyes were filled with shock. "This is an opportunity, an opportunity for our Qin family."
"Let alone exchanging for just one Qilin Fruit, we should agree even if it meant exchanging for everything we had before!"
"While a single protective talisman isn't worth that much."
"But we cannot refuse a Qi Refining stage expert."
"After all, his proposal of an exchange shows he respects our Qin family."
"If we refuse him, wouldn't that be disrespectful?"
"We also don't have the confidence to offend such a powerful individual."
"If we were to offend someone like him, our Qin family would surely pay a heavy price!"
He paused and then said earnestly, "Seventh Niece, you are not young anymore. If possible, I hope you can get to know Mr. Chen."
"This person is a true dragon."
"Let alone our Qin family."
"Even the noble families in the capital, upon learning of his identity, would vie to win him over and curry favor!"